Bourjois Colour Boosts!

Now I know you're thinking you might just maybe have seen these before somewhere, and yep, I know, they've been all over the blogosphere lately, but I thought I'd share with you my opinion because for one it's a little different, and two, I personally need about five gazillion good reviews of a hyped up product before I actually give in and buy it.
 First of all lets talk colour. I picked up the much raved about 'peach on the beach' and also what I thought was 'fushia libre' but is in fact 'red sunrise' (I only just realised this). As you've probably guessed (or read) peach on the beach is a peachy pink but unlike everyone else I am just not loving this one. Maybe I just don't suit a peachy pink, maybe it's just this shade I don't know, but while almost every post I've seen has called this a shade that will suit everyone, I'm here to tell you that it didn't suit me. A bit of a dissapointment there. However, the lovely pinky toned red of 'red sunrise' is a perfect colour! If your'e looking for a more wearable everyday red shade the pink tone and super glossiness of this shade makes it a must have!

(l-r, 'peach on the beach', 'red sunrise')

Ah, the glossiness! These colour boosts are amazing for super-glossy colour, mostly due to all the super hydrating ingredients in there- no dried out lips here! What impressed me most was the staying power. I didn't expect the colour boost to stay put that long to be honest, but apart from the gloss dying down after an hour or so, the colour was left behind similar to a stain, and I managed a whole day moving house and shopping, eating a sandwich and two drinks and the colour stuck! Yes it faded slightly and the gloss effect wasn't so impressive, but there was no embarrassing outline around my lips for the whole 10 or so hours I wore this! Impressive eh.

Here's a picture of me wearing 'red sunrise' (flash on and off but no filters, promise!). 

These babies cost £7.99 and are currently on offer in Boots (3 for 2) or Superdrug (Buy one get one half price) and there will be autumn shades to pick up soon I've heard. I'll definitely be picking up the other two shades soon!
Lots of Love,

On my face this week!

Hello beauties, first things first I'd like to say a little apology for being so absent from blog-land for the past two days, I've been moving things into my new uni house and have just been so super busy, I didn't want to give you guys a rubbish quick post so I thought I would wait and give you a few gems over the weekend. While I was doing all this moving I found myself wearing a much more simple and fast makeup look than usual - no five product face yet though- but still only seven, much less the usual array of powders and creams and potions on my face. This would be a perfect back to school face, or really a casual look for all the time if you're not an eye makeup girl like me.

On the skin I skipped primer (argh) and just wore Bourjois Healthy Mix in 'Beige Clair' and dotted Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer in 'Medium' on my blemishes and under the eyes in  bid to hide those tired black circles. Really a primer is a must in this hot weather though, which I quickly realised after climbing the stairs more than a few times.
I set my concealer with Soap and Glory's One Heck of a Blot (one heck of a must have on my sweaty forehead), and added a sweep of Benefit Hoola to contour. Seen as I was working a fresh faced simple look, I opted for a more noticeable blush than usual in the form of No7 Blush in 'Soft Damson' (I think the packaging has changed since I last stock-piled this).
Lastly I added a quick flick of No7 Extreme Length Mascara in 'Black' on both top and bottom lashes and a quick swipe of the 'Cherry Me' Babylips by Maybelline which I've been loving to throw in my bag- its as simple as regular balm but looks like you made a lot more effort.

And that's it, my super quick super easy face for those days I don't have the time to do a full face or simply can't be bothered! If you use any of these products let me know, or post a link to any of your simple makeup looks, I'd love to hear from you!
Lots of Love,

Minnie Minis!

Just a quick post today folks before I head off to work. I recently picked up this OPI Couture de Minnie Mini Collection in my local Sallys and I've fallen a little bit in love with it. The lesser known Minnie Mouse collection but by far my favourite, the set comes with 4 x 3.75ml shades, which sounds small but when you're a nail polish junkie like me and have 1 million shades to try, the mini's are a nice way to get more colours without breaking the bank. This set includes a lovely poppy bright pink, a similar colour but in the sand effect which I just LOVE!, a lighter pink which is a lovely neutral wearable shade and a deep pearly red similar to that that appeared in The Muppets mini collection which I also have. You can get them online here or have a look out for them in salons and other Opi retailers. 

(L-R) A Definite Moust Have, Magazine Mouse Cover,Chic From Ears To Tail, Innie Minnie Mighty Bow.

The names are so cute!! I think I'm going to have to buy the two shades on the left when I next get paid, I just can't resist, and you can never have too many picks right? I also spotted the first Minnie Mouse for OPI colours on fragrance direct recently for £3.99! Get buying ladies!

Lots of Love,

THE STARTING OFF PROJECT WEEK 1 : SKINCARE

Hello lovelies, and welcome to the first post in 'The Starting Off Project' (or #thesoproject)! Incase you didn't see my introductory post, #thesoproject will be a series of 10 posts, one each Tuesday, dealing with the basics of skincare and makeup, aiming to help those new to makeup, teens, and anyone interested (I know I'll be reading as many posts as possible!). This first week will deal with skincare:

THE BASICS
So, first things first, it's important to know that all skin is different. The products that suit me might not suit you as everyone has different skin, although we generally sort it into three types- oily, dry and combination (a bit of both). If your skin gets greasy a lot, you probably have oily skin, if you have flakiness to the skin, it's probably dry, or if like most of us you get oilyness on the t-zone and patchiness on the cheeks, you'll be combination like me. Before we get on to specific products, I'd just like to say, especially if you're new to makeup and skincare, keep things simple! There are millions of lotions and potions out there but for beginners a simple cleanse, (tone) and moisturise will be just fine!

CLEANSE
No matter what your skin type, there are a few things you should know. You MUST MUST MUST cleanse! I'll admit I can be a bit naughty with the ol' makeup wipes every now and again, but a good cleanser is best. My favourite is the Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser (free delivery today for 24 hours actually and you can get a starter kit quite cheap) , although a more affordable version for beginners would be the NO.7 offering (still £10 but much much more product as you can see)! Huh, hot cloth cleanser? I hear you say - don't worry, its not as complex as it sounds - simply massage all your makeup off dry skin with the lotion, dampen a cloth in hot water (there's the hot cloth) and gently scrub it off. These cleansers are usually made for all skin types, so it should be fine for all of you out there! Try to cleanse both morning and night, and always cleanse to take off makeup. And NEVER ladies, I repeat NEVER, put a baby wipe near your face!

TONE
Now this one is a little less essential, some people love it, others don't rate it, and personally I can take it or leave it. One I do love is the Clinique Clarifying Lotion, however it's not the cheapest so you could find alternatives in drugstores easily. This comes after cleansing, before moisturising, and should leave skin feeling clean, but not too tight! If you do fancy the Cliniques version, they do do starter kits with cleansers, toners and moisturisers which I highly rate, and if you go to the counter they'll help you decide which products you need to suit your skin (very helpful if like me you have trouble putting a finger on what your skin type is).

MOISTURISE
Finally in thebasic skincare steps is moisturise. Moisturise morning and night and you will see a difference in your skin! My favourites moisturiser of the moment is the Origins GinZing offering, but again a bit on the pricey side, some more purse friendly offerings I love are the UltraLift moisturisers from Garnier (even though I don't have wrinkle they just leave my skin looking lovely), and they're currently on 1/3 off in Superdrug. You might want a day a night moisturiser, but if you're just starting out, one good cream will do just fine!

SPOT PRONE SKIN
Besides the basics, once you get started you might want to add other bits to your skincare routine depending on how your skin behaves. As this series is aimed at newbies to makeup, teens in particular, its quite likely that you will suffer from at least the odd teenage hormonal outbreak, I still do and I'm almost 20! For spots I have 3 top tips -
1. The hardest to do, try not to cake too much makeup on your face. I know its hard as you just want to cover cover cover, but the less clogged the skin is, the quicker those spots will go.
2. Sudocreme! This stuff works wonders. Put a little on your spot when it flares up and overnight it will go down rather dramatically. Plus its available pretty much everywhere, and your mum probably has some in the cupboard already.
3. Try not to touch your face too much, as touching spots and then somewhere else is likely to spread the spot causing bacteria. Carrying an antibacterial hand gel could really help with this too.

EXTRAS
Other extras you might want to include are face masks (again clay ones or scrubs are great for spotty skin and moisturising ones for dry skin). My favourites are by Origins, but I also enjoy the more purse friendly Una Brennan range from Boots. Finally, you could add and eye cream such as the Benefit one shown to your moisturising regime, but I don't think this is essential. Much like a face mask this is a little luxury in the life of your skin which you might want to add once you've mastered the basics. Benefit actually do little starter kits like Clinque actually which I love, they last quite a while and were around £12.50 last time I checked, but these are probably not suited to problem skin.


Okay, breathe! I know that was probably a lot to take in, you might want to come back and read this again at another time ( a note to any newbies, if you have bloglovin and like a post it will save it so it's easy to come back to). To sum up -you must cleanse and moisturise, you don't need the extras but you might want to, and the best way to figure out your skin is probably to go to a counter in Boots or Debenhams or House of Fraser or wherever else and ask! You don't have to buy a product just because you tested it, you can ask for samples (this is especially important to sensitive skins out there), and you can get decent products at decent prices!
I hope this has helped, and please please do ask any questions or leave any comments.
Have a lovely week beauties, and I'll see you next Tuesday for concealer!
Lots of Love,

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Lustlist #1

1. Urban Decay Naked Pallette, £36. 2. Urban Decay Revolution Lipsticks, £15 each. 3. OPI in You Don't Know Jacques, £13. 4. Maybelline Babylips, £2.99 each. 5. Topshop Bronzer in Sandcastle, £9. 6. Shu Uemura Eyelash Curlers, £20. 7. Bodyshop Colour Crush Lipsticks, £10 each.
 Anybody out there feeling generous? (bats eyelashes)

This Week's Beauty Goodies no.1!

So this week I met up with a friend in town for a couple of drinks and a spot of shopping. What started as 'I'm too skint to buy much so I'll just window shop' turned into this. What I'd describe as a pretty BIG shop, considering I'm a poor student. BUT, I did pick up some quite amazing bargains so really it wasn't that bad at all (who am I kidding, right?). I won't go into too much detail at the moment because 1. you probably don't want to be reading this for the next ten years, and 2. I'll be doing deeper review of some of these lovely items so can get a better idea. 

First of all I went to Superdrug, and got a Vaseline Vitalising Body Gel Oil in 'cocoa radiant' for better than half price £2.33 and it smells and feels gorgeous! Next I picked up two Maybelline Colour Tattoo's in 'Pemanent Taupe' and 'Immortal Charcoal' (reviews of these to come) and because my friend bought one too we got all three for just under £10. See, very bargainous. From superdrug I also got a Loreal Skin Perfection Micellar Solution, which I've recently seen dubbed as a Bioderma-a-like (more to come on that too) and this was half price for £2.48. Lastly I also got a Rimmel ScandelEyes  Shadow Paint in 'Rich Russet' for £3.99.

Next we headed to River Island, where I picked up another Barry M Gelly in Lychee, and although they are £4 I have a voucher so I got this one for free (see, I told you I was still being good). Ps. These are on offer in both Boots and Superdrug though at 2 for £6 I think.

Of course we also headed to Boots, where I picked up a Soap and Glory Antibacterial Hand Gel because they smell so amazing, two Babylips in 'intense care' and 'mint fresh' (currently on 3 for 2) and also some Bourjois goodies - another Healthy Mix foundation, and Colour Boosts in 'peach on the beach' and 'fushia libre'. Because the Bourjois was also on 3 for 2 I got all three products for £18 (steal!).

In Topshop I experienced a real life miracle and got my hand on an eyeshadow trio in 'prism' in the sale for £1! That's right, not typo, 100 pennies! And it's lovely, a review will be coming very soon! In Sallys I also picked up an OPI Matte topcoat for just £6 as I am lucky enough to have a card, and in Lush after wanting to buy everything I settled for two favourites- another Volcano foot mask (£5.95) and a Stepping Stone foot scrub (£2.95).

Finally, we went to Primark, where the buys were less beauty orientated, but I'll include them too. I picked up yet another makeup bag for £3 (how can you resist at that price), a make your own necklace which I can't wait to play with, and some super-snuggly fluffly socks for £2 (I know its scorching but I'm already thinking all things fluffy for winter). You might have also noticed a Bourjois Nail Paint in there in 'blue no blues' which I didn't buy shopping but ordered from Asos last week too, so I included it. 

And thats it, one very productive and kinda-purse friendly shopping day I'd say! After this we decided we were tired out and went to the good old pub for a drink or two (it was hot okay?) and reviewed our purchases, and I must say, I'm very pleased with what I got. I won't add up how much I spent altogether because that could be quite frightening, and now my purse is firmly (or almost firmly) shut until payday (boooo!), but I have lots of pretty new things to play with! I hope you've enjoyed this nosy into my shopping bags, and I promise the reviews will be up soon! Please comment or message me, I'd love to hear from you. Have a lovely Monday everyone!!

Lots of Love

Bank Holiday Nails!

Happy bank holiday sunday my beauty blogging lovelies! I'm currently getting ready for a BBQ in this scorching heat, waiting for my nails to dry, and I thought I'd share with you the two nail art looks I've been rocking this week, and show you my new nail art buys! Nail art has been a massive trend over the last couple of years and I'm definitely a huge fan. I'm also the kind of person that rarely wears the same nail colour for more than a day or two, there's just too many colours and not enough time! Last week I ordered these amazing decals from diy nails which I love love love! I haven't tried the single decals on the left yet, but the leopard transfers on the right have seriously revolutionised my nail art routine! As a big lover of animal print, I've spent a lot a lot of hours carefully painting leopard print onto my nails using nail art pens, but these babies are clear decals meaning you can add them on top of any nail colour to create a super quick and super neat leopard look. In the picture below I've only added them to my ring finger as an accent nail but I think once I get onto my toes I'm going to layer them on top of a bright bright coral (Models Own Headkandi Hedonist maybe?).

The leopard decals cost £5, the single ones £6 and the little bits in the middle were a 'pic'n'mix' at £2.50. Also, if you spend £12 or over its free delivery and I got some freebies (the ones at the top). I would really suggest checking this site out -while I'm a big lover of ebay nail art supplies this site has really original, cant-find-anywhere-else designs. I thought I'd also add this picture of a look I've been loving earlier this week, but these chevrons were created using a simple Models Own nail art pen (currently on 2 for £8 here). The nail colour I'm using in both look is Bourjouis 1 seconde nail enamel in 'Blue No Blues'.

So overall I'm absolutely loving diy nails at the moment and will be ordering some more nail accessories once payday finally arrives! I'd love to try some more clear nail decals and the pre-painted false nails look really nice too (as you can tell I'm terrible at growing or keeping grown nails). Hope you've enjoyed this post, leave me comments, I'd love to hear from you, and have a fabulous bank holiday ladies!

Lots of Love

The Starting Off Project

Hello fellow beauty lovers, today I have a very exciting announcement for you- I am going to be part of a very exciting blogger series coming up called The Starting Off Project. Organised by the lovely Steph, the project is aimed at those new to makeup and beauty, looking for some tips on the best products and more importantly how to use them. Don't be fooled that this series is just for newbies though, I strongly strongly believe beauty and makeup is a learning curve, I'm always looking for new products, the best products and ways to improve my look! I've had plenty of makeup mishaps myself (the word tangoed springs to mind) and I'm almost certain I'll look back in  a few years at the makeup trends and have a what-were-you-thinking moment! A post will go out every Tuesday at 6pm, starting on the 27th, and for ten weeks me and all the other lovely bloggers involved (the last I heard there was 70 of us!) will be sharing our expertise!

The topics will be :
Week 1- Skincare
Week 2- Concealer
Week 3-Foundation
Week 4-Bronzer
Week 5-Blusher
Week 6-Mascara
Week 7-Eyeliner
Week 8-Eyeshadow
Week 9-Lipstick & Gloss
Week 10- Tools

To see who else is getting involved, have a look at the hashtag #thesoproject on twitter, and follow us girlies on bloglovin or subscribe to never miss a post! As a part of this series, I'm so so so excited to see what everyone else thinks, and I'm sure if you browse we'll all find a blogger who's tips and tricks match our need perfectly. If you're part of the starting off project too, leave a link to your blog in the comments below and give me a follow! Thanks ladies, and remember to leave a little time free for a little read on Tuesdays from now on!

Lots of love,

Fingers and Toes!

Okay, so actually this post is more hands and feet than fingers and toes in particular, I thought I'd share how I take care of my hands and feet. I don't like anything to complicated - we spend enough time applying lotions and potions to our face and hair and all of our makeup without spending half an hour every day taking care of our hands and feet too, however these babies do a lot of hard work for us all day long and sometimes can be easy to neglect. 

First of all hands, we won't talk nail care here (I'll save that for later), and a good hand moisturiser is essential. You can just use your regular body moisturiser of course, but for something a little more intensive I recommend Soap and Glory's 'Hand Food'- its like a thick moisturiser which sinks in quick and of course smells of that delicious soap and glory scent too! It comes in the full bottle shown but also in mini which is fab for travelling or shoving in your bag on dry-hand days. Apply this throughout the day if you feel you need it, or for a low maintenance approach if you're lazy like me keep this next to your bed and slap on a healthy does before bed! Available here currently (as always) on 3 for 2.

Now onto feet, way down there at the end of our legs walking around all day but never getting the attention everywhere else seems to get. I don't have problem dry feet but can get flare ups of dry heels (and sometimes big toes, weirdly) especially if I've been on my feet a lot or when the weather changes. To combat this I love the 'Stepping Stone' foot scrub by Lush (the weird green stuff in the purple tub). It actually comes in a funky foot shape like a pumice stone but you only need to break off a really small amount to use as a foot scrub, meaning it quickly breaks up, so you might want to invest in a little pot or dish to keep it in. This baby only costs £2.95 here, and depending on how dry your feet are I reckon used once a week you'll get around 10 uses. Next we have another lush lovely - the volcano foot mask. Now this one really isn't essential unless you have problem dry feet or sore feet (to avoid scrubbing), but it really does feel a luxury treat and help soften up them tootsies. You smooth this all over your feet, wrap in 'plastic' (I use cling film) and leave for ten minutes before massaging in and washing off. With about 6 uses to a pot for £5.95 this one isn't too expensive either, but personally I find the scrub much more effective. Also socks! Aren't they the cutest fluffy socks you've ever seen? I know they're odd, I couldn't find the matching one to either, however any fluffy or thick socks will do. Every once in a while I like to put as much moisturiser as humanly possible onto my feet then slide my thick socks over to let it soak in for a few hours. I know they do hand gloves to sleep in like this too, but I just couldn't bear wearing gloves to bed when I tried. Do this if your feeling dry, having aching feet or just whenever you fancy it, keeping the socks on for as long as possible (I like to sleep in them) and you'll end up with the softest feet ever!

Finally (and I'll be quick as I've rambled on), there are two products not shown here that I wanted to mention. For hands, I also like a scrub, my favourite being this one by Soap and Co, however I've ran out and can't afford to replenish it at £34.99 for a small tub. However, this makes does have stands in shopping centres, I got mine from Meadowhall, and you can talk them down to a better price if you have time. Also, I wanted to show you guys my favourite foot cream by Sanctuary but sadly since coming back from my holiday last week I can't find it anywhere. This has a gorgeous fresh, minty, tea tree-ey smell and really hydrates dry heels! Its on offer at the moment in boots and costs £7.50. I think it's especially important to take good care of your feet in summer seen as we'll be baring all in pretty sandals!

And thats it, my hand and foot routine! !Well done if you managed to read all that without falling asleep, and I hope you liked it. If you have any favourite hand and foot products, anything to recommend or any comments on this post I'd love to hear it!

my favourites: origins drink up intensive mask

I thought a good idea to start my blog was a 'my favourites' series, as I have so much stuff I could review I decided to start with what i consider the best products in my collection.

I picked up this little winner on a much-anticipated trip to London in June and I must say after two months of use I LOVE LOVE LOVE this stuff! I've tried a lot of moisturisers that feel nice, hydrating on application, but overall are nothing out of the ordinary, but this stuff is not one of those. You apply it 2-3 times a week (I love to use it as often as possible), and has the most gorgeous fruity scent, but not in any way perfumey or alcoholy in the way some products can be. But more importantly this makes my face feel amazing, and this is not something I say about many skincare products. I don't have particularly dry skin, other than occasional flare ups of flakes on my cheeks, but this leaves my skin plumped and dewy in the morning without the grease of some other overnight masks, plus no messy washing which is always a bonus! As you can probably tell I really do love this stuff, I even look forward to the next night I can put it on. At £22 its not the cheapest mask, but also not the most expensive, and I can honestly say that you need only a small amount, similar to a night moisturiser blob I would say, and after using this religiously for two months the bottle still feels pretty much full, I expect it'll last me a long long time. Its a much better deal than all those not-so-great £1 masks we used to buy for sleepovers back in the day if you think about it.

Overall, if you have dry skin, this is a must! If you have flare-ups like me, its a must! And to be honest, even if you don't suffer any dry problems, this is still a lovely non-greasy mask for that once-in-a-while treat!

a little introduction

 Not long before this first post (which I apologise probably wont be my best) I was largely unaware of the beauty blogging world, loving all things makeup all alone (cry), being told by my boyfriend all the time that I have some kind of 'illness' when it comes to shopping, particularly beauty shopping! As a little introduction I'll tell you a bit about me - I'm currently studying history at Leeds which i LOVE, spending too much time in Harvey Nics which i LOVE, and I'm not completely your average blogger. First of all I tend to find don't have the perfect skin and hair as the average bblogger- most of those girls look just as amazing before makeup as they do afterwards- unfortunately I wasn't blessed which flawless skin and anything less than crazy frizzy hair. Maybe this is one reason why I'm so obsessed with the results good products can create, and I in no way will ever express a view which is anything but my own and am not afraid to write a product off as rubbish...which I'm sure I will. Well I think I've blabbed on long enough, lets get down to all things beautiful....